There have been many stories of tragedy from Sulawesi, Indonesia. MAF's Rick Emenaker reminds us there are also stories of hope.

On the 12th October, Yayasan MAF Indonesia (MAF) was busy flying three tons of rice, two medical teams and medical supplies to the village of Lindu.

MAF Papua staff member, Stanley Lepar, volunteered for the flight on his last day in Palu, before his flight left for Sentani. He had spent the past 10 days helping with relief efforts.

Continually in his thoughts was his wife’s family who were from the Lindu area. His mother-in-law and extended family members had not been heard from since the quake.

‘This is the best day – I got to go directly to them. I am so blessed and thankful to God for this amazing opportunity!’ Stanley Lepar

‘When the flight was requested by the Samaritan’s Purse Indonesian team, they were not sure exactly which village to go to,’ MAF’s Rick Emenaker explains. ‘We looked at maps and found this village Lindu-Kanaan and decided that would be the best place to stage the rice.’

At that point, no one had any idea that the village was any more than a central point for the distribution of aid. It wasn’t until Stanley stepped out of the helicopter in Lindu, to help unload the rice bags, that the villagers queried his name and family history.

It quickly became apparent that Stanley had been brought directly to the village where his mother-in-law, her sister and brother, as well as the grandmother of his wife, Berta all lived! After a terrible ordeal, Stanley was delighted to find them safe and well.

Stanley’s family exclaimed that it was a miracle that he had found his way to them and the following two hours the family had an incredible time catching up.

In Stanley’s own words, ‘this is the best day – I was not even hoping to hear from them or see them and somehow, I got to go directly to them. I am so blessed and thankful to God for this amazing opportunity!’

Stanley arrived back in Palu, beaming from ear to ear! Hearing his story brought tears and great joy to the team in Palu.

‘We are glad to be here reaching out to those who need help.

Thank you for your prayers and support it is making a difference here in Sulawesi.’ Rick Emenaker

Related places

As featured on Channel 4's 'Flying to the Ends of the Earth'. Many MAF families - local and international - fly and maintain 13 MAF aircraft from bases across Papua to bring help and hope to the isolated.

Related news

The Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) team in Mozambique, operating locally as Ambassador Aviation, continues its disaster response work in Mozambique, following the devastating cyclone which made landfall near Beira on Thursday with winds up to 106 mph.

Other stories in the same area

The impact of the Earthquake was felt well beyond the coastline of Sulawesi. The people in the village of Kulawi are left isolated between multiple landslides that have cut off access in or out except by foot or air.

The differences between a floatplane and a wheeled aircraft seem pretty obvious. But when it comes to actually flying and landing on the water, there is a lot more beneath the surface. Story by Chris Burgess

Pigs are worth a lot of money and meat is generally rare, so pig roasts only happen on special occasions. MAF Communications Officers Mark and Kelly Hewes visited the village of Iratoi with a missionary family and witnessed this tradition first-hand.

Beautiful Borneo - hundreds of miles of uninhabited jungle. There are absolutely no roads to the village where we are flying. The only way in and out is by plane. Story and photos by Matt and Ellie Sheer.

A story of rescue and faith. When we received a message that a Papuan man had fallen from a tree, MAF pilot Pieter van Dijk flew to the remote community where Ferry lived to evacuate him. Story and video by Tjeerd van Dijk